A Large Cast of Dancers Performed with Stunning Scenery and Rich Costumes at the Historic Santa Barbara Theater on May 13
The classic ballet The Sleeping Beauty was presented by Classical Arts Entertainment (CAE), an agency that has been promoting Ukrainian state ballet companies around the world for nearly ten years. Founded by Michael Art, a graduate of the Azerbaijan State Academy of Arts and originally from Armenia, CAE has produced famous classical ballets in over 10,000 cities, according to their website. Their professional production team includes Ekaterina Vaganova, a graduate of the Moscow University of Culture and great-granddaughter of the famous ballerina Agrippina Vaganova, who originated the Vaganova method of training dancers.
Based on the original fairy tale “La belle au bois dormant” by Charles Perrault, The Sleeping Beauty was choreographed by Marius Petipa in 1890 to music by Tchaikovsky for the Imperial Ballet of the Mariinsky Theater in St. Petersburg, Russia. It has remained one of the classics that are still performed with few changes to the original choreography. The classical Petipa choreography, with its stark lines, was executed in its pure form by the dancers of the CAE troupe. Beautiful hand-painted sets and exquisitely rich costumes enhanced the performance of the classical choreography.
The story follows the typical fairy tale pattern: A king and queen have a baby girl; all the fairies are invited to the christening, and they all bestow gifts on the princess. Only one fairy was left out — the evil Carabosse — who curses the child so that, on her 18th birthday, she will prick her finger on a spindle and die. The Lilac Fairy, who had not yet given her blessing, ameliorates the curse. Rather than dying, the princess Aurora will fall asleep for 100 years, after which time she will be awakened by the kiss of a handsome prince. Of course, the king bans all spinning wheels from his kingdom, but on Aurora’s 18th birthday, an old hag — Carabosse in disguise! — entices Aurora to try her hand at spinning and, as predicted, she falls into a deep, century-long sleep. Lest her parents die before she awakens, the whole palace also falls into a deep sleep.
In the second act, the anticipated prince seems to see Aurora in a dream. He finds her, cutting his way through the forest, awakens her with the prophesied kiss, and the rest of the palace entourage simultaneously awakens. Of course, a grand wedding ensues! At the wedding, some of the guests are other fairy tale characters: a blue bird and his lady, Puss ‘n Boots and his partner the White Cat, and Red Riding Hood and the Wolf. The prince and Aurora are married, and all is well in the realm.
CAE has recruited a cast of dancers mostly from Ukraine, but also from neighboring countries, many of whom are graduates of prestigious national academies. As Ekaterina Vaganova explained, some of the Ukrainian male premier dancers were unable to join this tour because of the travel restrictions placed on males of conscription age by the government. Chilling.
Under the auspices of CAE, these dancers have been on a gruelingly long tour, the first part of which started on the East Coast and Canada on November 2, 2024, and finished on January 21, 2025. After a few weeks’ break to go home and see their families, the artists resumed their tour from February 18 through May 20, and will depart for home on May 21. As Vaganova explained, “We’re proud to offer them meaningful work and stability through this 6.5-month tour, which included [more than] 150 performances across the U.S. and Canada.”
Sleeping Beauty is a tremendously long ballet, demanding a lot of endurance from the dancers. The stark Petipa choreography for the grand pas de deux in the second act is quite difficult, as it requires a lot of strength and balance on the part of Aurora (the female lead). The principal dancer who played Aurora showed herself to be up to the task, with incredibly strong balance and a gracious presentation, as did the soloist who danced the Lilac Fairy. All the company dancers were quite lovely and precise, and I particularly enjoyed the various ‘fairy’ variations in the first act.
The names of the dancers who played each role were not included in the online program; rather, the names of the principals were listed with their general credits (see here), but not specifically tied to their roles in this production.
The principal dancer who played Prince Desire demonstrated very powerful and breathtaking leaps, but the most dynamic performance was that of the male lead who played the evil fairy Carabosse. He was as scary as the Wicked Witch of the West who frightened children in The Wizard of Oz!
In the second act, the fairy tale characters of Puss ‘n’ Boots and the White Cat stole the show. Their humor and expressive performances stood out among the soloists.
Vaganova explained that, although most of the production company members are originally Russian (now living in the U.S.), they are fully committed to supporting Ukraine and assisting the families of their Ukrainian dancers.
Before the show, I purchased a small set of bracelets from the people who were selling “merch” in the lobby, as all the proceeds of the show were going to benefit the people of Ukraine. When the war first broke out, I was at an international ballroom competition. Ukrainian and Russian coaches and their students were devastated and torn apart by the war. We (American dancers, myself included) gave lots of money to support Ukraine at that time, but we might forget that this war is still tearing the country apart. Readers who missed this show, but wish to donate to the Ukrainian victims, can still do so through the official website: https://war.ukraine.ua/donate/
I wish the CAE dancers a successful finish to their long tour and a well-deserved rest. For those who return to Ukraine, we wish you an end to this tragic war and a successful outcome. Slava Ukraina!
